Darling, I Love You
by Light-Blue Flower
Summary: Francis Bonnefoy and Arthur Kirkland loved and were married for many year…that is, before a certain misunderstanding happened to cause them to separate. After contacting Arthur, Francis was only able to talk to him about what was to be done about their sons. Four years later, they finally start talking to each other, and they find out their true feelings..EX-Face,FrUk,Details insid
1. Introduction

**A/N: Thank you for clicking on this story! This is the side story to my other fan fiction ****_"What if?"_**** which features… Drum roll please…* Drum roll* Canada and the one, the only, awesome, PRUSSIA! *shot for being too loud*. Anyway, since I do not have enough room for the summary, I had to cut it short. This is the whole summary, and some more information on the story:**

Summary: Francis Bonnefoy and Arthur Kirkland loved each other dearly, and were married for many years…that is, before a certain event and misunderstanding happened to cause them to separate. After desperately contacting Arthur, Francis was only able to talk to him about what was to be done about their sons, Matthew and Alfred. Arthur had no intentions of hearing Francis' pleas at the time.

Now, four years later, they are trying to lead their lives without each other, but they still have personal conflicts about the situation and feelings they have. Francis works at a bar, whereas Arthur continues to teach at _Roma's International Academy_, where their sons are now attending. Francis had wasted his previous years drinking and working, trying to forget about Arthur, whereas Arthur seemed to have moved on. The results of doing so kind of loosened their ties to their children a bit. When Matthew and Alfred gets accepted to the Academy, and events start happening, Arthur finally works up the guts to talk to Francis. As a bit of time, and actually communicating, passes by, they start to mend their wounds and truly find out how dear they hold one another...

Universe: AU High School, or, Normal Life (because Francis and Arthur are adults in this)  
Genre: Romance, Family, Hurt/Comfort, Drama, and Humour (I'm not really sure about that, thought)  
Rating: T  
Pairings: FrUk, with mentioning of PruCan and AmeriPan

** Yes, so, that's really all there is. I don't think you guys need to read the PruCan fiction to understand this (it would be such a bother). This not only revolves around mending Francis' and Arthur's relationship, but also their relationship with others…hopefully I'm not confusing anyone ^_^ **

** Oh, and I'm just letting you guys know, the French I know is Canadian French. It's apparently different from France French, so I'm just letting you guys know. If you are interested in the story, then please, continue on to the next page for the Prologue! Thank you again!**


	2. Prologue

Prologue

It was three in the morning. The night was still and quiet. The moon still was hung up in the sky, and the stars were bright. Everyone should be asleep by now. And, most people were asleep. Except for the 30 year old Arthur Kirkland.

The Brit felt like crying…Heck, he was already bawling his eyes out in his living room. The tears haven't even begun to dry. He felt like tearing himself up. He felt so stupid, and played at.

He didn't believe it at first. He didn't want to believe it. He didn't want to believe that the pictures that Katyusha (a good friend of his) sent him were real. It was not true.

Arthur couldn't sleep at all. He figured that he could have slept right away at 10 o'clock. But, for some damned reason, he couldn't. Instead, **he** must have lain in his empty bed, staring at the ceiling, for four hours straight. He decided to go to the living room and just sat on the couch, drinking his usual cup of tea. At around 2:10 in the morning, he didn't feel like sleeping. He didn't want to return to his bed alone. But, after a few minutes, he told himself it was best to go to bed, and he almost did. Almost. He received an unpleasant phone call from Katyusha before he could.

"Hullo?" he asked, his British accent still intact.

"H-hello, Arthur? It's Katyusha," said a Ukrainian-accented woman over the line.

"Oh. Hullo Katyusha. I was about to go to bed. Is there something you need to ask me? It's bound to be important for you to call so early in the morning."

"Um, no, I don't have something to ask. I have something to…t-tell you. P-please, don't get mad at me! I felt like it was right to tell you right away, even though it's none of my business. But, you're a good friend, so, I need to-"

"Alright Katyusha," Arthur said, laughing. "What is it that you need to tell me?" Katyusha told him what she needed to tell him. He didn't believe her at first. He thought that she was pulling his leg. But then she sent a few photos through text as proof. Arthur couldn't believe his eyes.

"I-I'm sorry Arthur," Katyusha said, sounding like she was about to cry.

"…"

"I j-just had to…I'm sorry for sending y-you this."

"No…I should be thanking you Katyusha. Please, excuse me. I need to do something. Have a good night."

"U-uh, good night to you too-" Arthur hung up on the call before she could finish. He continued staring and flipping through the photos. He was horrified. He felt like he was shot by a gun at his heart, and somehow survived to feel the unbearable pain.

He has a husband called Francis Bonnefoy. They knew each other for a very long time, and they were together for a long time. They'd been married for ten years now, and have two, lovely young boys who are now ten years of age. While Arthur works as a teacher at an academy, Francis works at the _Braginskaya's_ _Bar _as a bartender. It is also where Katyusha, his close friend, helps out, since her family owns the place. Francis also worked as a chef during the day, but for some reason, he seemed fond about his night job. Now, at the photos Arthur's seeing right now, he sort of understands why he keeps that job.

The photos showed Francis…with another woman. A very sexy woman, Arthur had to admit. She was obviously 100 times more attractive and seductive than Arthur. The perfect, luscious, platinum blonde hair, a nice body…she was just perfect. What made it worse about the photos was that in every single one, Francis and that woman…were kissing. No, not kissing. They were having a really _really _hot make-out session. Francis looked like he was basically on top of the woman to begin with. And, Francis seemed like he didn't care at all. He seemed like he didn't care who looked.

Arthur couldn't understand anything at all at first. He just started to feel a pain surge from his chest, and he started to cry. Tears kept pouring out of his eyes, falling on the living room floor. He couldn't stop them, no matter how much he tried.

Then, he made a terrible assumption that made him feel like killing himself: Maybe, all this time, for the past ten years that they have been married and Francis started working at the bar, Francis has been secretly hooking up with girls' like that blonde woman. All this time, Francis was having relationships like that behind Arthur's back. All this time, he's been **using** Arthur, toying and playing with him.

"No…no it's not…it's not true. Please, god, it's not true. Francis wouldn't do this to me…He wouldn't. I know h-he wouldn't. Please. This can't be happening…This can't be happening…It's not real…" He repeated these words, trying to calm himself down. But, the more he looked at the photos, the more he felt like crying, and he felt even more unbearable pain than before. Arthur felt like killing himself. He wanted to disappear right at that moment.

"Shit! H-how could I let him do this to me? W-Why? Why did he do this to me? T-t-this c-can't be h-happening. N-no…no! Shit, how could I fall into his bloody game?" He started to wipe his tears with his shirt, and tried his best not to make a lot of noise. He needed to think straight. He needed to calm down. He needed to breathe properly and think clearly at the same time.

"I…may as well ask him about this…Since I can't seem to figure out anything right now," he muttered quietly to himself, picking himself up and going to make him another cup of tea. He silently drank the extra cup, looking spaced out and unclear. He drank half-way through his cup when, unfortunately, he heard the front door open. He took a sharp breath in, and quickly took another deep breath. He heard footsteps draw nearer towards the kitchen.

"Ah, Arthur! What are you doing up so late?" said a French-man. Arthur turned around to face his husband, Francis. For one thing, Arthur was surprised of how genuinely tired Francis seemed, and how he had a worried expression on his face, like something was annoying him.

"I was waiting for you," Arthur said, trying his best not to make his voice crack. Francis didn't seem to have noticed, and just smiled.

"I'm sorry if I made you wait Iggy." The way Francis said made him sound like he was truly sorry. But, after what Arthur saw just a moment ago, it could have been another one of his sweet simple lies. "We should get some sleep, anyway." Francis started to walk away, but noticed that Arthur has not gotten up yet.

"Say, Darling…" Arthur seemed like he was about to say something else, but refrained himself from doing so.

"Yes, _ma Cherie?_" Francis said jokingly, trying to lighten the mood. When Arthur did not snap at him for using the female form of 'my dear', Francis seemed to have known something was wrong. "Is everything alright?"

"I don't know. You tell me," Arthur said monotone, his voice suddenly having a cold tone.

"Arthur," Francis said slowly with caution. "Did something happen?" Arthur green eyes made contact directly at Francis' blue eyes.

"Did something happen tonight?" Francis stood there frozen.

"N-no," Francis finally replied. "Why do you ask?"

"Are you sure that something-oh, I don't know- **interesting** happened tonight?" Arthur asked, taking a step forward and taking out his phone.

"A-Arthur," he said, his voice shaking. "I don't know where you're leading this to, but I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Don't bloody lie to me Francis."

"I-I'm not lying!"

"…" Arthur was now at least two meters away from Francis. "Fine," he finally said, pressing on his phone, finding something, and raised it in front Francis. "Can you explain this to me then?" Francis leaned in a bit. His eyes widened, horrified, when he saw the picture of him and the blonde woman…making out.

After a few minutes of not saying anything, Arthur spoke up. "Well?"

"T-That…" Francis looked like he was trying to say something. "That…is…not me…" he said, his voice draining.

"This…is not you?" Arthur repeated, obviously not buying it. Francis nodded his head. Arthur just stared at him and sighed at his lie.

"Yes. See that?" Francis continued on. "There is no ring on his ring finger. So, it is not me." Arthur looked down at Francis' right hand, to notice how there was no ring there either. It just added to his previous pain.

"You are not wearing you ring on your ring finger either at this very moment."

"Y-Yes, b-but-"

"As I said earlier Francis, don't lie to me," Arthur said, now closer to Francis.

"I'm not lying…" Arthur stared at Francis with narrow eyes.

"You've been drinking, haven't you? You smell a bit like alcohol." Francis did not respond to that, and just looked away. "You also smell like perfume." Arthur continued to stare at Francis, until he finally decided to fess up.

"Okay, I'm so sorry Arthur. I did drink, but it was just half a glass! And that guy **is** me, but it was not like I wanted to do it. She spiked my drink or something! Really Arthur, its true-"

"You bloody liar!" Arthur yelled, tears sprouting out of his eyes. "How could you fucking lie to me all this time?"

"No, it's not like I wanted to. It's just that, I knew you could get mad and…wait. All this time?"

"Don't play coy you stupid frog! You don't think I figured it out yet? After seeing that picture, you don't think I understand? You were bloody going out with other women behind my back!"

"_Quoi?!_" For some reason, Francis did truly sound confuse. Arthur's not falling for that. "I would never-"

"You bloody liar! All the proof is right here!" Arthur yelled, pointing at his phone. "You obviously have been doing this for a long time now, haven't you?"

"N-"

"How long have this been going on for Francis? How long? Was it since you got that job? Was it ever since we were married? Maybe before that? You've been doing this for, what, 10 years now?! Maybe even before-"

"I would never do that!" Francis yelled back. "Why would you think I would do that?! How dare you think that way about me?!"

"How dare YOU do this to ME? You were fucking using me-"

"I was not using you!" Arthur ignored him, and continued on.

"Yes, you were fucking using me as your bloody toy! Your bloody sex toy! You were only using me for your own pleasure when you are not pleasing yourself with those women! You go out drinking behind my back, and kissing up to those women! I can't believe I've been sharing the same mouth and body that a lot of other people must have used!"

"Arthur, stop this-"

"YOU ARE SO BLOODY STUPID, YOU KNOW THAT? YOU WERE PLAYING WITH ME, AND I FELL FOR IT! I ACTUALLY FELL FOR IT! You must have never loved me at all! You just wanted to have me stick around for your sexual pleasure, you horny frog-"

"_Ferme ton stupide bouche maintenant, ou je vais te lancer dehors! Tu peux rester là pour le reste de ton vie. Je ne te pitié pas! Close your stupid mouth right nw, or I'll throw you outside! You can stay there for the rest of your life. I won't take pity on you!"_ Arthur just stared at Francis. Even though he had he had a limited knowledge to the language, he was still able to connect the dots and understand.

"Arthur, I didn't mean…It was just that my stupid mouth just said some random shit. I don't mean it at all-…where are you going?" Arthur rushed past Francis, and quickly made his way up the stairs. Francis immediately followed him.

"Arthur!" This caused Arthur to halt, but he soon resumed walking, making his way into the bedroom he shared with Francis. He started to go through his closet and dressers, taking whatever clothing and items he could get a hold of, and tossed them on the bed.

"Arthur, what the hell are you doing?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Arthur said, taking out a bag, and started to shove some items in it. "I'm leaving. You wouldn't care anyway." He heard Francis groan in frustration.

"Arthur, I didn't mean it. I swear. My mouth just ran out on its own. Really…Stop packing right now!" Arthur stopped, and looked directly at him.

"Who are you to tell me what to do? And who said that you were kicking me out? I'm leaving on my own free will."

"What?"

"You heard me Francis. I'm leaving you. I don't want to be played around with anymore."

"Iggy, listen to me-"

"Don't call me that."

"You have to listen to me! I'm telling you the truth! I would never want to cheat on you! Why would I want to do that?"

"Why should I believe you? A moment ago, you lied to me saying that you did not kiss that girl and you were not drinking!"

"Because I knew that you'd get mad at me…"

"Oh, and you think lying to me would make it any better?"

"No, and it was wrong to lie to you. I am sorry. But, don't go." Arthur ignored Francis' plea, and continued to pack anything he could find. Finding no other option, Francis just forcefully grabbed both of Arthur's hands.

"Let go of me." Arthur said menacingly.

"No. I'm not letting you leave."

"You have no bloody control on my decisions, Francis. Now let go of me."

"…" Francis shook his head, refusing to let go. Arthur slowly turned red, and he forcefully tried to get out of his grasp. Unknowingly, words started to spurt out his mouth, as his rage slowly built up. Unknowingly, Francis' grip started to get tighter, hurting Arthur's wrists.

"F-Francis, let go…" Arthur said, trying to get out of the grip, which was now hurting him. He felt like his skin was going to rip for some reason, fingernails are digging deep to his arms, and his wrist might crack any minute now.

"…" Not saying anything, he looked down, not knowing he was hurting the other.

"Seriously, l-let go…" The pain felt unbearable, and tears started to form.

"Please, let go of me! It hurts! You're hurting me!" Arthur finally cried, causing Francis to let go of his wrist. His arms looked purple-red, and his hands trembled violently. There was blood coming from the wounds of where his nails dug in. It was obviously going to leave a mark. He couldn't feel his hand that well. Francis stared with wide eyes at the wounds that he caused. He seemed lost of words. Arthur just started to cry when Francis was about to reach out for his arms.

"Don't touch me!" He started to throw whatever he had in reach, whether it was combs or cologne bottles. He even threw his Flying-Mint Bunny at him.

"I-I'm sorry, Arthur. I didn't mean to hold you that tightly…" Francis said, dodging all the items.

"That's what you always say! Now look at when you don't mean to do anything!" Before he could go on, he heard light footsteps near the door. They both turned towards the direction of the door. There stood their sons, Alfred with Matthew behind him, looking like he was holding back tears. Arthur quickly hid his bloodied arms behind him.

"D-Dad? What's going on?" Alfred asked, his voice shaking. Matthew whimpered when he heard Alfred spoke.

"Alfred. _Mathieu_. It's nothing-" Francis started, but was quickly cut off.

"Boys. Go pack your things." Both of the children looked confused as of what Arthur had said.

"W-What? Why…"

"Do not ask questions! Just pack your clothes and other necessities right now!" At the command, they both scurried of to their rooms, not asking any questions.

"You are not seriously going to leave? And take the boys with you?" Francis asked his voice now hoarse. Arthur said nothing, and quickly grabbed the rest of his clothing and books that he kept in the room. He picked up his bag and violin case, and grabbed the set of keys that were on the dresser. He started to walk towards the door, with Francis right behind him. He paused right outside their room, turned around and whispered:

"Yes I am. Goodbye, Francis." And he quickly closed the door before Francis could even get out. Using the set of keys he had, he locked the door, causing Francis to be locked in. When the door is locked from the outside, it's possible to open the door from the inside if they had the key for it. Same way vise-versa. They never really knew why the creator of the house did that. Arthur was partly glad that they did.

"Arthur! Open the door!" He yelled from the other side, banging on the door that made Arthur shudder. He picked his stuff again, and went to Alfred's and Matthew's room. They already had their bags packed. Matthew decided to pick up the polar bear pet he had. Arthur was about to say something against it, but he decided against it. It's not worth the time.

"Come along, now," he said bluntly. Dragging both of them down the staircase and into the car without saying anything, Arthur walked up the steps to lock the front door. He couldn't hear any more banging, and he just locked the door and left in the car.

"Dad, where are we going?" asked the quiet whisper of Matthew. Both he and his brother were in the back of the car, with Arthur driving behind the wheel. He just stared blankly at the road in front of him, not caring what turns he took. He hadn't actually decided on where he's going.

He had decided to park on the side of the road, knowing full well that the cops would kill him for staying too long. He just needed time to think.

"Dad?" asked Alfred.

"…" Arthur did not respond, and looked straight ahead.

"Dad!" Matthew asked, a little louder than usual. Irritated, Arthur turned around and snapped.

"What do you want, Matthew?! Can't you see that I am bloody thinking at the moment?! What are you, bloody blind or something?!" Matthew sunk back in his seat, squeezing his polar bear, and looked like he was going to cry. Alfred looked at both him and his father, worried.

"That wasn't nice, Dad," Alfred muttered, patting Matthew to calm him down.

"I-I d-didn't me-mean to up-upset you, D-dad," Matthew whispered, taking small gulps of air to calm him down. Arthur felt a pang of guilt. How could he yell at his kids? At a time like this, too, when he didn't want anything bad happening and no idea what's going on.

"I'm sorry for yelling Matthew. I just…" He stopped. The more he stared at Matthew, he noticed how he had Francis' blonde, wavy hair, and beautiful eyes, and…He ended up crying out of nowhere, his head resting on the wheel of the car.

"Dad?" Matthew whispered, getting off his seat. "Don't…"

"…Cry," Alfred finished, wrapping his arms around his dad the same time as Matthew, trying to sooth him.

"I just….I'm sorry…" Arthur whispered, trying to calm down.

"Why did we leave Pa-"

"Alfred!" Matthew warned to his brother, knowing well what his brother was going to say. Instead, he took over. "We should go, Dad. We can't stay here forever."

"Yes. I know." Arthur whispered, regaining his composition. "Thank you, boys…" Alfred and Matthew returned to their seats, and remained silent for the rest of the ride.

"Where are we going?" Alfred asked cautiously.

"…I guess we'll just go to your aunt's house and sees what happens next."

And after a going to their aunt's house, and being re-directed towards Arthur's Scottish brother's house, he came to a decision. A decision that made him secretly regrets it later…


	3. Chapter 1

**A/N: Thank you for reading this and following! I read the reviews yesterday...I've got to say, personally, I've felt terrible for doing that towards Arthur and Francis (it pained me to write it ;_;). But, don't worry! It will end happily (I promise that)! Just letting you guys know, it will take time to update this story...I'm sorry! It's just that, whatever Matthew does in my other story (the story _What if?_) kind of affects this story. I promise to try to update this soon, however. **

** Anyway, thank you in advance for reading this! I hope you guys enjoy.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia.**

Chapter 1

"Kuma, give that back!" Francis Bonnefoy groaned when he heard his son yelling at someone in the kitchen. He rolled over his bed, and opened one bleary eye to look at the ceiling. Slowly opening the other one, he glanced at the clock in his room. He let out another groan when he realised how 'early' it was in the morning. Francis took a quick glance outside his window, to be welcomed by the sun of the February morning.

There was no way Francis cannot go back to sleep at that rate. Curiously, he decided to go to the main floor to see what was going on. He ignored the fact that he still had his uniform from the previous night on, and he continued to walk out the door and down the stairs.

He came near the doorway that led to the kitchen, and he peeked inside. He found his son, Matthew, sitting on the floor, with a letter in his hand. His wavy strawberry blonde hair fell elegantly forward, covering his face. Francis had no idea what he was doing.

"_Bon matin_," Francis said, his voice sounding a bit hoarse. He leaned against the door-way tiredly. He was still tired from his shift from last night. He placed a hand on his chin curiously. "_Tu faisais beaucoup du bruit._" Matthew took notice of Francis, and looked up.

"_Ah, Papa! Salut!_" his son exclaimed as he stood up. He still had the letter in his hand. "_Je m'excuse. Est-ce que je t'ai réveillé?_"

"_Ouais, mais c'est d'accord. Qu'est-ce que c'est ça dans votre main?_"

"_C'est juste une lettre. Elle a été envoyé par une école secondaire! Er, est-ce-que c'est d'accord si je téléphone _Dad _et Alfred maintenant? _You can read the letter now if you want!"

"Go ahead," Francis replied, moving a bit so Matthew can leave. When Matthew was in the hallway, Francis took the opportunity to walk up to the kitchen counter, picking up Matthew's pet polar bear on the way. Holding the letter in one hand, Francis started to scan through it. He smiled as he saw the results of his son's hard work on paper.

"So, you got into the school you wanted to get in." Francis thought happily, glad his son got it. He was a smart kid, and his brother, Alfred was also smart. It's a great opportunity for both of them to go to an excellent school together: _Roma's International Academy_. It's also a good thing that they went because their Dad, Arthur, can keep an eye on them…especially since Francis can't.

_Arthur_…Francis thought sadly at the name. _I wonder how he's doing…_

* * *

"What is Alfred doing now?" Arthur Kirkland muttered to himself, as he heard his son talking nonstop, and opening the door out of their apartment. He thought he'd be able to sleep in that day. But, it seems like there is no way that's going to be happening.

Arthur stretched his arms out tiredly, sitting up. Then he flopped back down on his bed. He doesn't want to leave. But he can't bloody go back to sleep. Cursing, Arthur heaved his legs out of his bed, making his way tiredly to wash himself for the day.

By the time he came out, he could hear Alfred in the living room, chattering away. Curiously at who and why Alfred was talking non-stop (although, it was normal for Alfred to do so), Arthur walked into the living room with some sweatpants and shirt.

"Alfred, why are you up so early?" Arthur asked, passing by Alfred who was lying on the couch with a phone in one hand, and a hamburger in the other. Arthur went straight to the kitchen to fix himself a tea. "Why are you eating a hamburger for breakfast?"

"Yo, Dad!" Alfred said, noticing his father.

"Can you at least say a good morning?" Arthur said with a sigh. Has he really grown him up that way? Matthew turned out way better than him.

"What, doesn't a 'Yo' count as a 'Hello'?" Alfred asked from his couch. "What? Oh, sorry Mattie. I was talking to Dad….Tell him the news? What news? ...Oh! Right, dude! I'll tell him. Or do you want to talk to him? ...Yeah, I'll tell him then. Are you coming over? ...Oh, okay, bye bro!"

Arthur heard Alfred hang up the phone with a loud tap on the 'end call' button, and wrapping paper crumbling. Alfred walked into the small kitchen, tossing the wrapper into the waste bag. He failed, however, and he forced himself to bend over and put the wrapper in properly.

"Matthew's coming over," Alfred said bluntly, brushing past Arthur and rummaged through the fridge. "Is that fine?

"Oh?" Arthur said, as he put a packet of tea in a cup, and stirred the hot water in it. "Matthew's coming over at this time? It's kind of cold outside, isn't it? You sure he'll be fine walking outside?"

"Whoa there Dad," Alfred said, taking out a can of coke. "It's too early on a Saturday for so many questions!" Arthur walked up to him and grabbed the coke out of his hands.

"And it's too early on a Saturday to drink pop," Arthur said, putting the coke back in the refrigerator. Alfred pouted, trying to put on puppy eyes. It wasn't very effective…

"So, Matthew's coming over? Will he be walking here?" Arthur said, turning his back to get his tea. Alfred secretly took back his pop.

"Yeah. He says he'll just walk. He doesn't want to ask _Papa_." Arthur felt himself stiffen when Alfred said his other dad.

"Why doesn't he ask _Francis_? What's he so busy with?" Arthur said his voice suddenly colder. Alfred took note of how his Dad said his _Papa_'s name, and proceeded with caution.

"_Papa_ had work last night, and he worked for a long time-"

"Pfft. As if he was 'working'," Arthur muttered under his breath, as he sipped his tea. "He still works at that bar, right?"

"Why are you asking me?" Alfred said with a shrug. "Why don't you ask him yourself?" Arthur looked over at Alfred, narrowing his eyes. Alfred knew full well about his parents' relationship. It was foolish of him to say so.

"Really, Alfred?" Arthur said. "You're his son, shouldn't you know-"

"And, you're his husband! Or, ex-husband…But still!"

"Alfred-"

"Why don't you talk to him yourself, if you care so much? Hasn't it already been too long for you to stay mad at him?"

"Alfred!"

"What, Dad?" Alfred snapped, irritated. Always in these arguments was Alfred ready with comments.

"I only simply asked you **one **question. And do not speak to me in that tone. Understand?"

"…" Alfred did not reply, and just walked out of the kitchen. Arthur sighed in disappointment at his attitude. _He's at that age_, Arthur thought.

"What is it that you were about to tell me?" Arthur asked, remembering how Alfred was telling Matthew how he was going to tell Arthur the good news. Alfred lay on the couch, and looked at him confusingly.

"I was going to tell you something?" Alfred looked up, putting on a thinking face. He then snapped his fingers together when he remembered. "Oh, right! You know how me and Matthew-"

"Matthew and I," Arthur corrected him.

"…Yeah, how me and Matthew took the exam to go to R.I.A? The international academy you teach English at? The one near here?" Arthur groaned at Alfred's terrible grammar and selection of words. He then rubbed his temple irritably.

"Yes," Arthur said slowly, urging him to go on.

"Yeah, well, guess what? We got in." Arthur stared at him blankly, with wide eyes.

"…What?"

"Um, me and Matthew-"

"Matthew and I."

"-got in. We passed the exam!" Alfred looked at Arthur confusingly. "Aren't you happy?"

"Y-Yes, of course I am!" Arthur said, completely surprised. "I mean, I understand Matthew getting in, but I never expected you to!"

"…Wow. That was super harsh and blunt of you, Dad." Alfred said with a huff.

"I'm not the one with the terrible grammar… Oh, I was just joking, Alfred! You know that." Arthur said playfully, seeing how Alfred was glaring at him. "Really! I'm glad for both you and Matthew-"

"Shouldn't it be 'Matthew and you'?" Alfred said, seeming to find an opportunity to talk smart. "Since I have to say 'Matthew and I'."

"…No, sweetheart. It's fine to say 'you and Matthew'. Please, can you not correct the English teacher who has more knowledge in the English language?" Alfred muttered under his breath how all his Dad actually has to make him sound smart was his British accent.

Suddenly, the two heard the front door open and close. They both looked to the direction of the door, to find Arthur's other son (and Alfred's brother), Matthew, in the process of taking off his shoes.

"Oh," he said (whispered) as he saw Alfred and Arthur. "Good morning," he said with a smile. His face was red as he took off his hat. This makes Arthur to bring back to the previous topic he was wondering about.

"Good morning Matthew," Arthur said, walking up to him and placing his hands over his cheeks. His face was _freezing_ against Arthur's hands. "Oh! Mattie, you're freezing! Why did you walk here? Couldn't you have asked Francis?"

"N-No," Matthew muttered, glancing at Alfred, as if asking for help. "He was tired, so I didn't want to-"

"If you really want to know, Dad," Alfred said. "Then maybe you should just _talk to Papa_." Arthur scowled at Alfred, before letting go of Matthew's face. He quickly changed topics.

"So, I heard you got accepted! Good job Mattie. As a celebration, I shall make some scones. It'll only take a few minutes, now!" Arthur made a bee-line towards the kitchen. Alfred and Matthew stared at each other, not liking the sound of that, and made a quick escape towards their bedroom.

_I don't need to talk to Francis_, Arthur thought to himself furiously. _I don't need to know how he's doing or what he's doing. Not like he'd care for me…We haven't talked for three years, so he wouldn't care about me at all. Nor should I._

* * *

**Translation:**

_**"Tu faisais beaucoup du bruit."  
"Ah, Papa! Salut! Je m'excuse. Est-ce que je t'ai réveillé?" : **__Ah, Dad! Hi! I'm sorry. Did I wake you up?__**  
"Ouais, mais c'est d'accord. Qu'est-ce que c'est ça dans votre main?" : **__Yeah, but it's alright. What's that in your hand?__**  
"C'est juste une lettre. Elle a été envoyé par une école secondaire! Er, est-ce-que c'est d'accord si je téléphone Dad et Alfred maintenant?" : **_


	4. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thank you for continuing reading, following, favoriting and reviewing! I was about to upload this way earlier but it somehow got deleted...and I had quite a difficult time re-typing this. I hope you all enjoy this!**

** *Katyusha is Ukraine.**

Chapter 2

"Good evening, Francis!" Francis looked behind him to see the person who had called him.

"_Bon soirée_, Katyusha!" He replied back with a smile, as he saw the woman. "Don't you have work tomorrow?"

"Yeah, I do," said the woman, her voice with a Ukrainian-accent. The woman had short, ashy grey hair, her bangs held back by a yellow ribbon. She was wearing the same uniform that Francis was wearing, but there were slight changes: instead of a black tie with her white collared shirt, she had a black bow on and a black skirt. "As always, I'm only helping out here until more workers come. But, it seems like it's not going to be busy tonight."

Francis glanced around the bar for a moment. Katyusha was right. It was quite rare for the bar to be this empty. The bar was quite popular for their specialty of vodka, and many people come there just for the hell of it. Usually music would be playing, and some may even dance to it.

"Mhm, you're right," Francis said, returning his look at Katyusha. He felt like he had to tell her something…but what was it?

"Oh!" he said, suddenly remembering the good news he was about to share. "I almost forgot! How foolish of me. You know that Academy you work at?"

"Uh-huh," Katyusha said, as if she was expecting something grand.

"Both my sons have been accepted to attend," Francis said proudly, smiling. "You should expect them to be in one of your classes!"

"That's great, Francis!" Katyusha said happily; glad to see her friend being so proud. "Although, I don't think either of them might end up in my class. If they decide to take Ukrainian, Russian, or any of the Family and Social Sciences classes as their eight subjects, then they'd be expecting it. Other than that, I'm pretty sure I'd encounter them in the hallways."

"Ah, right! You don't really teach out of those three subjects, do you?"

"They're what I do best. Unless they decide to take Parenting in grade 11."

"I remember you took that subject when we were in grade 11! It was such a pain in the ass…"

"Yeah, it was," Katyusha said, smirking at the remembrance of another detail. "Not only was that annoying, but **Arthur **would complain and yell at us to shut it up!" Katyusha immediately realised mentioning Francis' ex, and felt like slapping herself (she did so mentally). However, there was no change of expression from Francis, and he still was smiling.

"It was quite a nuisance, the both of them," Francis said, but he only seemed to be joking. "How is Arthur doing, anyway? You see him every day at your work, right?"

Katyusha stood frozen, biting the bottom of her lip nervously. She had an internal conflict with herself, trying to decide whether she should really respond to that question.

"He's…alright." Francis didn't seem to take note of how her voice sounded uncertain, and continued to wash the glasses.

"Still over-working himself?"

"Yes…" Suddenly Katyusha felt uncomfortable at the conversation. She sighed in relief when a customer called over a bartender. Francis turned away from her and made his way towards the man who called him.

She watched Francis, with a hint of sadness in her eyes, as he was happily took the customer's order. He was still smiling, and he seemed to have ignored about who they were speaking of. Someone else called for a bartender, and Katyusha was forced to tear her gaze away from the French-man and turn her back to him.

Francis went to fill out a cup of German beer for the man who had called him, and took out a bottle from a cupboard. As he filled in the glass, he paused and set the bottle down. He looked down, smiling sadly. He placed a hand into his pocket, and felt a small, cold metal against his fingertips. He took the object off and realised it was a golden ring- his _wedding_ ring.

_So_, he thought. _Arthur's doing fine with me, huh?_ He allowed a few tears to slip, before brushing them away quickly with his sleeves.

* * *

"What's this?" Arthur muttered to himself, as he picked up a small, blue velvet box that was on the floor in his closet. He brought it up close to his face, turning the small box a few times for examination.

Originally, that night was supposed to be spent correcting tests and grading assignments for Arthur. However, during the middle of his work, he felt the need to procrastinate, and decided to busy himself by cleaning his bedroom. He wouldn't have done much work anyway if he had decided to sit on the dining table, since both Matthew and Alfred had decided to play video games in the living room. Arthur can hear them clearly from his room, even though he told them not to yell since it was already so late into the night.

"Head-shot! Ha ha! Did you see that, Mattie?" Alfred yelled proudly. He was most likely playing the game and Matthew was just the observer.

"Behind you!" Said the soft voice of his brother, Matthew.

"Wha-? Oh fuck! No fair, brah! I didn't see that!"

"Alfred!" Arthur yelled sternly through the door. "No swearing."

"Yeah, yeah. Sorry Dad. Oh, shit!"

"Alfred!"

"I told you, 'yeah, yeah'! Geez, Dad. Cut me some slack."

Arthur just rolled his eyes at his younger son's behaviour, and drew his attention back towards the box in his hand. Carefully, he opened the box. An unusual feeling built up inside of Arthur as he stared at the two rings that sat inside the velvet box.

There was one ring of silver colour and another ring of gold colour. Both represented something different for Arthur; at the same time, both reminded him of the same thing. Arthur was about to close the box and toss it back in the closet, but instead, he decided against it.

"…I wonder if they would fit," he said to himself, taking out one ring at a time.

He slipped on the silver one first through his finger. The silver one seemed simple, but expensive; it had four, small diamonds that adorned it. It was able to go through Arthur's finger with some ease, but it took Arthur a while to take it off and place it back into the box. He then tried the gold one on. There were small, pretty designs carved into the gold, and one, small diamond in the middle. Arthur had tried to tell the one who gave it to him that it was just a wedding ring, and there was no need to do anything special to it. Nevertheless, the one who got it still bought it for his one and only Arthur, despite what he said.

As soon as Arthur put on the golden ring, he felt a soft, warm glow inside of him. The feeling of the ring made him feel…nice and warm on the inside. Realising that he was smiling the entire time, he quickly wiped off the smile and replaced it with a scowl. He looked at the ring, seeming like he was about to take it off. But, instead, he left it there for a while.

Huffing, Arthur laid on the bare floor on his back. He started to twirl the ring around a bit.

_Why do I feel like this?_ He thought glumly. _It's been nearly four years since we separated. I thought I'm over __**him**__…No, wait! I am over him! What are you talking about, Arthur? Of course you're over __**Francis**__!_ Arthur intake a sharp breath when he realised that he was thinking about his ex.

The mere thought of the name Francis sickens him more than saddens him. He dislikes that Frenchman with a burning passion. After what he did to Arthur -after what he's been doing behind his back after so many years-, Arthur would never, ever talk of him, or even think to him.

Arthur suddenly felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He completely forgot about the ring, and he fished out his phone. He smiled when he saw the Caller ID.

"Hullo?" Arthur asked the caller, knowing full well who it is.

"Hello? Arthur?" Said a masculine voice over the other line.

"Yes?"

"O-Oh. Hi, Arthur. This is Percy. U-Um, from the museum..."

"Oh, hi, Percy! Why do you call?"

"U-Um, I was just wondering if you're free tomorrow during the afternoon, that's all…"

"Hm, hold on one minute," Arthur faked, secretly pumping his hand in the air. "…Yes, I'm free tomorrow. Why?"

"Oh, I was just wondering…um…if you, you know…want to go out to lunch with me?"

"Oh, uh, well, sure. What time?"

"E-eleven, if that's alright with you."

"I'm alright with that," Arthur said with a smile.

"Okay then…Um, I'll see you tomorrow then. Have a good night."

"You too." Once Arthur ended the call, he smiled idiotically and threw a fist in the air. _Yes!_ Recently, Arthur had met a man of the name Percy at a museum. He was really cute in Arthur's opinion, and he shared a similar interest in mythical creatures. After his separation with his ex-husband, Arthur needed to find someone new. And Percy is the perfect guy to fill in the role.

Arthur glanced down at his golden ring. He suddenly felt a pang of guilt, but shrugged it off and placed the ring inside the velvet box. He looked at the box once more, before he tossed it inside the last drawer of his dresser.

He is not going to be held back. It was high time that he moved on.


End file.
